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Chief Legal Officer (Equity)

PressChain
$185,000 - $325,000 / year
Market Range: loading...
Posted Aug 24
Full Time
Remote

Press Labs, Inc. is seeking a Chief Legal Counsel to lead the company's legal function and serve as a senior strategic advisor to executive leadership as Press Labs develops and commercializes PressChain, the Press Trust Layer, PRESS-related infrastructure, enterprise trust products, blockchain systems, intellectual property, and related technologies.

 

The Chief Legal Counsel will be responsible for protecting the legal interests of Press Labs, Inc. while helping the company operate, raise capital, establish commercial relationships, protect intellectual property, navigate regulatory requirements, manage disputes, and scale across multiple industries and jurisdictions.

 

COMPENSATION

 

Press Labs, Inc. is currently operating in a pre-funding stage. The Chief Legal Counsel position is therefore structured as a meaningful founder-stage executive opportunity, with equity participation during the pre-funding period and competitive cash compensation commencing after the company successfully secures sufficient outside financing currently estimated within 60-90 days.

 

 

Pre-Funding Compensation

 

  • Post Funding Salary Range: $185,000 - $325,000
  • No salary, hourly wage, or guaranteed cash compensation will be payable prior to Press Labs, Inc. securing sufficient outside financing to activate funded executive compensation.
  • The pre-funding period is intended to allow the Chief Legal Counsel to become involved with the company, contribute to its legal infrastructure, strengthen fundraising and corporate readiness, and participate in the long-term value being created without imposing an immediate cash obligation on the company.
  • The pre-funding workload and expected time commitment will be structured reasonably around the company's stage, resources, financing progress, and immediate legal priorities.
  • Press Labs, Inc. makes no guarantee or representation concerning the timing, amount, valuation, or successful completion of any fundraising transaction.
  • Backpay will accrue during the pre-funding period and only payable once the company has secured it's Pre-Seed round.

 

 

Equity Compensation

 

  • The Chief Legal Counsel will be eligible for an equity grant ranging from 3% to 7% of Press Labs, Inc., with the final percentage determined according to experience, qualifications, level of involvement, responsibilities assumed, pre-funding contribution, expected long-term commitment, and the final negotiated agreement.
  • The equity opportunity is intended to provide the Chief Legal Counsel with meaningful ownership and long-term alignment with the growth and enterprise value of Press Labs.
  • Equity will be subject to a formal equity agreement, applicable securities laws, corporate approval requirements, vesting provisions, and the company's governing equity documents.
  • A standard structure may include four-year vesting with a one-year cliff followed by monthly or quarterly vesting, although Press Labs may negotiate an alternative executive vesting arrangement based on the candidate's role, level of contribution, and circumstances.
  • Any unvested equity will remain subject to the terms of the applicable equity agreement upon termination or separation.
  • The final equity percentage, form of security, vesting schedule, dilution treatment, acceleration rights, and other equity terms will be documented separately and formally approved by the company.

 

 

Post-Funding Base Salary

 

Upon completion of a qualifying fundraising event and determination by Press Labs, Inc. that sufficient operating capital is available, the Chief Legal Counsel will transition to paid executive compensation.

The anticipated post-funding base salary range is:

$225,000 to $325,000 annually

The final salary will be determined based on the amount of capital raised, company capitalization, operating budget, candidate experience, workload, geographic considerations, scope of responsibility, and whether the individual ultimately functions as Chief Legal Counsel, General Counsel, or assumes broader Chief Legal Officer responsibilities.

An exceptionally qualified attorney with significant experience across venture-backed technology, securities, blockchain, digital assets, intellectual property, corporate transactions, and regulatory strategy may be eligible for compensation above this range as Press Labs reaches later stages of capitalization and growth.

Salary will begin only after the company has completed sufficient financing and formally activates the position's funded compensation structure.

 

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

 

Corporate Governance and General Counsel Functions

 

  • Serve as the principal internal legal advisor to Press Labs, Inc., its Founder and Chief Executive Officer, executive leadership, and authorized corporate decision makers.
  • Advise leadership regarding corporate governance, fiduciary responsibilities, board procedures, stockholder matters, corporate approvals, resolutions, capitalization, subsidiaries, organizational structure, and major corporate actions.
  • Maintain or supervise the maintenance of material corporate legal records, approvals, agreements, board materials, governance documentation, capitalization records, and other required corporate records.
  • Review significant company decisions for legal, contractual, regulatory, governance, and liability implications before execution.
  • Establish internal legal policies, approval procedures, delegation authorities, documentation standards, and risk controls appropriate for a growing technology company.
  • Help ensure that corporate actions are properly authorized, documented, and consistent with the company's governing documents and applicable law.

 

DIGITAL ASSETS, BLOCKCHAIN, AND PRESS TOKEN MATTERS

 

  • Advise the company regarding the evolving legal and regulatory environment applicable to blockchain infrastructure, decentralized systems, digital assets, token economics, validators, protocol participation, bonding mechanisms, governance systems, and related technologies.
  • Analyze the legal implications of PRESS token utility, distribution, incentives, rewards, governance functionality, protocol participation, ecosystem payments, validator economics, and other token-related activities.
  • Help establish a legally defensible distinction between PRESS utility and activities that could create unnecessary securities, commodities, money-transmission, banking, or other financial regulatory exposure.
  • Coordinate with securities, commodities, financial regulatory, tax, and digital asset specialists when specialized advice is required.
  • Help structure products and ecosystem activities to reduce unnecessary regulatory exposure while preserving legitimate technical and commercial utility.
  • Review public descriptions of PRESS, token functionality, economic incentives, protocol participation, and related systems to reduce the risk of inaccurate, misleading, or legally problematic representations.
  • Monitor material regulatory developments involving the SEC, CFTC, FinCEN, state regulators, courts, Congress, and other authorities that could affect Press Labs, PressChain, PRESS, or related technology.
  • Assist leadership in developing policies relating to token allocations, ecosystem incentives, contributors, validators, treasury management, governance, and other areas that may have legal implications.

 

PRESSCHAIN AND TRUST LAYER LEGAL STRATEGY

  • Advise on legal issues arising from PressChain's development as verification and trust infrastructure serving media, artificial intelligence, commerce, institutions, and other industries.
  • Evaluate legal issues relating to provenance records, evidence submission, identity verification, reputation systems, TrustScore methodologies, attestations, validators, trust records, and blockchain-based records.
  • Develop appropriate terms, disclaimers, governance standards, participation rules, and risk controls governing how users, businesses, publishers, developers, validators, institutions, and other participants interact with PressChain.
  • Help distinguish technological verification, provenance, reputation, evidence, and trust infrastructure from legal determinations, professional certifications, factual guarantees, credit ratings, endorsements, or other representations that could create unnecessary liability.
  • Review new PressChain products, protocols, features, APIs, verification systems, and enterprise services before public release for material legal and regulatory risks.
  • Advise the company regarding liability associated with user-generated evidence, disputed information, verification results, reputation scores, permanent records, identity information, and third-party reliance on PressChain data.
  • Help develop governance and dispute-resolution frameworks appropriate for decentralized and semi-decentralized systems.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

 

  • Experience serving as General Counsel, Chief Legal Officer, senior in-house counsel, corporate counsel, or outside counsel advising technology companies.
  • Experience with venture-backed startups, emerging technology companies, or founder-led businesses.
  • Experience with blockchain, digital assets, cryptocurrency, Web3 infrastructure, financial technology, decentralized systems, or related emerging technologies.
  • Experience with securities offerings, venture financings, capitalization matters, investor transactions, and corporate governance.
  • Familiarity with intellectual property strategy, patents, trademarks, software licensing, trade secrets, and technology transactions.
  • Familiarity with privacy, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data governance, and enterprise software regulation.
  • Experience managing litigation, regulatory matters, and outside counsel.
  • Experience advising companies operating across multiple jurisdictions or regulated industries.
  • Experience working directly with founders, boards, investors, and senior executive leadership.